Sunday, 22 May 2016

#plaque366 Pasqua Rosee

A London plaque for every day in 2016. The plaques are selected from all walks of life, and all points of the London compass – and I'm taking requests too!DROP ME A LINE or leave a comment below if you'd like to nominate a plaque for inclusion in the series

Pasqua Rosée…

… an Armenian servant of a coffee importer by the name of Daniel Edwards, opened the first coffee shop in London, just off Cornhill, in 1652. Rosée was also responsible for the first coffee house in Paris in 1672.

By 1675 there were more than 3000 coffeehouses in England (cue another joke about a certain Seattle-based chain of coffee emporia having 3000 in one street). King Charles II, however, wasn’t so keen on ‘em. He believed them to be "places where the disaffected met, and spread scandalous reports concerning the conduct of His Majesty and his Ministers."

A
London Walk costs £10 – £8 concession. To join a London Walk, simply meet your
guide at the designated tube station at the appointed time. Details of all
London Walks can be found at www.walks.com.